Pediatric specialties filled 77.5% of certified positions offered (1,530 of 1,975) in the 2024 Medicine and Pediatric Specialties Match, a decrease of 1.7% compared to last year.
The number of positions filled and offered, however, increased slightly over last year’s numbers of 1,487 and 1,878, respectively.
Pediatric critical care had the highest fill rate at 98.7% (222 of 225 of positions), a notable increase from the 92.4% filled the previous year (207 of 224). Pediatric infectious diseases filled 48.3% of positions, a 0.2% increase from last year.
Following are fill rates for other pediatric specialties.
- Pediatric cardiology, 92% (172 of 187 positions).
- Pediatric hospital medicine, 92.3% (120 of 130).
- Neonatal-perinatal medicine, 87.4% (277 of 317).
- Developmental-behavior pediatrics, 61.2% (30 of 49).
- Pediatric pulmonology 48.4% (46 of 95).
- Pediatric nephrology, 37.2% (29 of 78).
- Child abuse pediatrics, 33.3% (10 of 30).
Jesse Hackell, M.D., FAAP, chair of the AAP Committee on Pediatric Workforce, said there are bright spots, such as fill rates in neonatal-perinatal medicine and pediatric hospital medicine. However, the overall numbers are concerning and show the need to increase the number of pediatricians, especially subspecialists, in the pipeline.
“The real problem we’re seeing in the workforce of pediatric subspecialties is we have an undersupply of physicians in those fields,” Dr. Hackell said. “We have the same problem in general pediatrics. In the residency match last spring, the number choosing pediatrics as a field doesn’t seem to be going up, whereas the numbers of people going into other fields seems to be increasing across the board.”
Of the 1,602 applicants who preferred pediatrics, 1,524 were matched to pediatrics (95.1%). Three of the applicants preferring pediatrics were matched to a different specialty, while 75 applicants did not match to any program.
This year’s program placed more than 8,300 residents into fellowship training for 39 subspecialties in internal medicine and pediatrics as well as addiction and other multidisciplinary subspecialties through the National Resident Matching Program, according to the 2024 Medicine and Pediatric Specialties Match Results Report. There were 3,709 certified programs, 7% more than last year’s record of 3,482 programs. In total, 9,649 positions were offered, a 6% increase from the 9,068 positions offered in 2023.
Of the 9,649 positions offered, 8,313 were filled (86.2%). The number of applicants certifying a rank order list totaled 10,255, an increase of 9% over last year. Of the 10,255 applicants who certified a rank order list, 81.1% were matched into a position.
Medical debt likely plays a part in aspiring physicians choosing fields other than pediatrics, Dr. Hackell said. Lower salaries for pediatricians and lower payments for the large number of children covered by Medicaid also likely contribute to fewer choosing pediatrics, he said.
“This is reflective of what we’re seeing overall in the house of pediatrics — the nonprocedural subspecialties don’t offer enough compensation to be really attractive to people who have other things, like debt, to consider,” Dr. Hackell said. “Unfortunately, it comes down in a large part to money. It’s just unfortunate how these shortages can negatively impact children’s access to health care.”
Match Day 2025 for the Main Residency Match will be held on March 21.
